A/N: Thank you all for the reviews on chapters one and two, I'm happy to see so many familiar readers and even a few new ones. Before I continue with chapter three, I want to answer one question that has been asked by an anonymous reviewer: will Cell and Bunny sense that they are related? The answer is no… not right now, that is.

When it comes to Cell, Bulma greatly altered his genetic structure before he married Kameko, and his energy changed along with it. Though 'Seru' still has DNA from Nappa, Frieza, his father and the Z-fighters, it is overshadowed by the now dominant genes of Seventeen and Eighteen, the two strongest human fighters that used to be part of his system. Not even Kameko herself recognized him at first, and only a selected few know that Cell and Seru are actually one and the same.

As for Bunny: I'm not sure how powerlevels and genetics work, but there are two things we know from the show: Cell was created artificially, and it is possible to sense the individual powerlevels of his donors, especially when he uses a specific attack. Future Trunks was created the natural way, but Goku could not sense he was the child of Bulma and Vegeta, even though he has their cells. Therefore, since Bunny was not conceived through artificial means, she has a single, distinct powerlevel of her own. Of course, with a former bio-android for a father, no one can exactly predict how things will pan out…


Chapter 3: Monster of Nicky Town

"Hey, turtle girl? Just for the record, this is all your fault."

"My fault?! Who's brilliant idea was it again to hijack grandma Bulma's time machine and… EEEEEK!!! THERE'S A SPIDER ON MY SHOULDER! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!!!"

"Calm down, it's not a spider. It's just a wasp."

"THATS WORSE, YOU MORON!!!"

"Will you stop screaming and stand still?! If you keep flailing around like that, you're going to hit that…!"

"Oops…"

The two rivals ran for their lives as a swarm of angry wasps came rushing out of the hive that Bunny had wacked out of a nearby tree. Muddied, scratched and covered in twigs and pine needles, they emerged from the forest and onto a freeway. Tsuru turned around, blasting the insects from the sky.

"You're lucky those weren't honeybees," Bunny pointed out. "Those are endangered in this timeline, you know."

"Oh, they'll soon have company," Tsuru glared icily, trying to untangle his hair which stuck in messy clumps to his scalp.

"Save it for the ring, crane boy," Bunny said, wiping some mud from her face. "I don't want to fight without an audience to watch me kick your butt."

"That's why I said 'soon' and not 'now'. I did not come all the way here to settle the ancient turtle-crane feud in an ordinary street brawl." The boy smirked, raising a balled fist. "You're going down, Roshi. I'll kill you with my own hands and then the whole world will finally understand the superiority of the Crane School once and for all."

Bunny groaned, rolling her eyes. She enjoyed the martial arts as a hobby, but Tsuru Tao was an absolute zealot. Sometimes it was easy to forget, but underneath the cocky, playful attitude, he was a ruthless fighter; vicious, skilled and utterly without mercy. Their seemingly innocent witty banter was nothing but a smokescreen, and Bunny knew that the second she dropped her guard, the boy would turn on her in a heartbeat.

"Well, I don't know about you," she started, "but I'm hungry, tired and feeling leaves in places where they don't belong. Let's find a hotel first and freshen up a bit. I'm sure there are plenty of accommodations near the tournament grounds."

"For once, turtle girl, we're on the same wavelength," he agreed, cursing under his breath as he zapped a tick off his bare arm. "So… how do we get to the Budokai from here exactly?"

"What do you mean? You programmed the time machine, didn't you?"

"I thought you did."

"But I didn't know how to operate the…" she blinked, sweatdropping. "Uh, Tsuru? If neither of us entered any coordinates, then… where are we?!"

"How the hell should I know?!"

"Hey, look over there," Bunny said, walking to the side of the road. There was a white sign with black lettering and the picture of a smiling panda on it.

"'Nicky Town', huh?" Tsuru frowned. "Sounds like some backwater hole to me."

"Well, as long as they have showers and a restaurant. I'm starving!"


"One ham sandwich and a glass of water," Tsuru ordered as he sat down on a barstool, his elbows resting on the wooden counter.

"And how about you, miss?" the elderly bartender asked Bunny as she sat down next to her rival.

"I'll have five cheeseburgers, three sides of fries, two hot dogs, potato salad, whatever is your daily special and a large iced tea… no, wait make that three, I'm kinda thirsty."

"Uh… will… will that be all?"

"Yeah, that snack should hold me over for a while. I'll eat for real once we find a place to stay."

The bartender sweatdropped, but nodded and retreated into the kitchen.

"So… what's your secret anyway?" Tsuru quirked an eyebrow.

"What secret?" Bunny asked, munching on some free peanuts.

"Don't play dumb with me, turtle girl. I've seen you eat truckloads of food at high school, and yet you look like a walking stick figure. You're throwing up or something, aren't you?"

"I am not!" she protested, insulted. "I've actually been trying to gain weight, but nothing seems to work. I guess I just have a really fast metabolism or something."

"No one has a metabolism that fast," he narrowed his eyes. "No one human, that is…"

"And what is that supposed to mean?!" she glared, angrily poking his chest. "You're the weirdo here, mister ham sandwich! How can a professional martial artist get by on a glass of water and two lousy slices of bread?!"

"Maybe I'm exercising a little self-control because some of us don't want to get stomach cramps during the fight."

"Loser. I bet you wear Hello Kitty nose plugs and wait three weeks before you go swimming too…"

The crane school disciple opened his mouth to retort, but the bartender emerged from the kitchen with their order.

"There you go, kids. Enjoy it while it's hot!"

"Oh boy! Chowtime!!!" Bunny rubbed her palms, wolfing down her food as if she hadn't seen any in years.

"You sure have a healthy appetite, don't you?" their bartender chuckled as Bunny devoured the last of her meal, and began gulping down her iced tea.

"Uhhuh… tfis ifs gwreaft!" she eagerly nodded with her mouthful. Tsuru shuddered, pushing away his plate.

"I think I just lost my appetite," he muttered.

"I don't blame you," the elderly man said somberly. "With that monster roaming around, eating is the last thing on most people's minds right now. In fact, you two are the only customers I've had since…"

"Whoa, stop! rewind!" Bunny cut him off. "What monster?!"

"You haven't heard?" the man blinked, grabbing a remote from under the counter and turning on a small TV hanging in a corner from the ceiling. It now displayed a news broadcast, though it weren't the reporter's words that first struck terror into their hearts.

"T-T-Tsuru… there, at the b-bottom of the s-screen…" Bunny whispered hoarsely, her face pale as a sheet. "L-Look at the d-date!"

The crane disciple follower her gaze, all color instantly draining from his face as well.

"May 12, Year 767… If I remember my history classes correctly, that day marked the dawn of the android age of terror!"

"Oh man, this is bad! This is very bad!" Bunny panicked. "Tsuru, do you realize just how dead we are once their rampage starts?! We're no pushovers, but those artificial demons are gonna be way out of our league!"

"I'm surprised we're still alive as it is," the general's son remarked grimly. "It's past noon already, didn't they go on a mass killing spree once they found out that their initial target had died of a heart virus? We should have heard something about them by now."

"Androids? Heart virus? What are you kids talking about?"

"Sir, this is important; Have you seen or heard anything about a boy and a girl called Seventeen and Eighteen wreaking mass destruction?"

"I don't know who or what you're talking about, Miss," the bartender scratched his head. "All I know is that some strange monster ate everyone in Ginger Town and only left their clothes behind. 15.000 people dead, and Kami knows how many more missing. Poor sods…"

The two rivals stared at the TV, their eyes fixated on what seemed to be a recap of the news so far. A middle-aged reporter looked back at them, nervously adjusting the collar of his shirt.

"As you can see behind me, disaster has struck in the once so peaceful Ginger Town!" he announced, gesturing towards the deserted streets, countless of empty shirts, pants and dresses scattered all around.

"Establishing contact with the residents has so far been unsuccessful and all we found were tattered garments, as if the entire population has been sucked right out of their clothes!"

"Ginger Town? That isn't far from where we found that disgusting husk. I wish I brought my history book, surely something like this should have been documented," Bunny said to her archrival, who had already decapsulized his suitcase and was now frantically flipping through the pages of 'Android Armageddon - a detailed report'.

"Man, why didn't I think of that?"

"Because you're an idiot. Now be quiet, I'm trying to concentrate!"

Muttering under her breath, Bunny turned back to the TV. The reporter was still describing the horrific scene, and now gunshots could be heard in the background.

"Oh my, it seems the town isn't completely deserted after all! Let's move in closer and try to get a… huh?"

The reporter stared into the camera, his eyes widening in horror. He let out one last frightened shriek, and then the broadcast suddenly turned to static. When the image returned, there was a different reporter, a dark-haired woman, looking back at them.

"That was the last footage of Keitaro Matahara reporting from Ginger Town, before we lost all contact. Our hearts here in the station go out to his family and those of the camera crew, as we fear our beloved colleagues have fallen prey to the monster as well. A memorial broadcast in their honor will be held at…"

The bartender took the remote again and switched the channel.

"… are urging everyone in Nicky Town to evacuate immediately!"

"There's nothing here," Tsuru gritted his teeth. "I've searched this thing from back to cover, but nowhere does it mention an disaster like this. It doesn't make any…!"

"Shhh!!!" Bunny hushed him, pointing at the screen. There, a rather heavy man was sweating bullets, pointing at a map that showed a red line, which was slowly growing longer.

"The monster was last spotted moving through the outskirts of the Spice District and has been predicted to strike again somewhere in this area. Officials are strongly advising everyone in or around Nicky Town to…"

Without warning, all hell suddenly broke loose. There was screaming as a sea of people stampeded through the street in blind panic, glass shattering and anything from mailboxes to complete cars being hurtled through the air. Bunny could hear someone cackling, the voice grating and laced with an inhuman evil that made her skin crawl and hair stand on end.

"Kami help us…" the elderly bartender mumbled, grabbing a rifle and climbing over the counter. "Children, stay behind…!"

The poor man never got to finish his sentence. His eyes widened in shock, his muscles and skin sagging like a deflating balloon. His panicked cries for help drowned away in muffled gurgles, then went silent entirely. The two rivals could only stare, frozen in horror, as the last of the bartender's body withered away and only his clothing was left.

"Ah, how… invigorating," a voice rasped behind where the man once stood. Bunny didn't want to, but it was as if her eyes had a will of their own, slowly travelling up the creature's nightmarish frame. The tip of his tail lifted from the pile of empty clothes, now swaying lazily behind him. The appendage itself was like the rest of his body; a dark green with black spots, with some parts like his hands and feet being a slightly lighter shade. The monster was at least two meters tall, his physique lanky and almost gaunt. Insectlike wings adorned his back, though it was difficult to tell if they served a function, as they seemed too small to support the creature's weight. Finally her gaze rested on his face, two pink, snakelike eyes staring back at them. His orange beak twisted into a cruel grin, the monster's tail slowly moving behind him. Bunny's brain had grinded to a complete halt, but now kicked back into full gear as it registered what was about to happen.

"TSURU! LOOK OUT!!!" she yelled as the deadly syringe suddenly shot at the boy with blinding speed. The crane school disciple snapped out of his shock and leaped out of harm's way, the tail crashing into the barstool he had sat on only a split second earlier. Bunny jumped off her chair and next to her rival, both of them assuming their combat stance.

"Thanks, Bunny, that was close," the boy gulped, betraying his fear. He almost never used her real name, only when pure terror made him forget to mock her.

"What is this?" the monster hissed, baring his fangs. "No ordinary human could have seen that coming!"

Tsuru recovered remarkably fast, color returning to his face. He smirked smugly at his attacker, cockily folding his arms.

"Nice try, but we're not helpless sheep like that old fart you just sucked through that tail of yours. Isn't that right, Ro…?"

Bunny clamped a hand over his mouth, grinning sheepishly at the monster.

"Excuse us for a moment, will you?"

She dragged the boy outside, smacking him over the head.

"What was that for?!" he exclaimed.

"'Roshi'?!" she whispered angrily, glaring daggers at her rival. "Are you trying to give away my identity?!"

"Oh please, don't be such a spaz. That thing probably never heard about the turtle hermit or that he's going to adopt your mother."

"You don't know what it knows, and I don't want to risk it going after my grandpa!" she hissed.

"And why should I care?"

"Because if you don't keep your big mouth shut, I just might let something slip about a certain world-famous assassin who lives not too far from the Spice District. You endanger my birth, and I'll endanger yours, got that?!"

"Fine then… 'Bunny'," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Have it your way."

By now the streets were deserted, Nicky Town's inhabitants either on the run or already dead. Metallic footsteps bounced off the abandoned buildings as the monster emerged from the diner, an faint aura of energy softly buzzing around him.

"Are you two done talking?" he asked almost politely. "I expected you to take this chance and try to escape, but I'm surprised to find you're still here. I'm glad too see there are at least some humans sensible enough to realize the futility of running, though it does somewhat lessens the satisfaction of absorbing you."

"You're not scaring us, bugface," Bunny glared, but an involuntary shiver still ran down her spine. There was something about this creature… something that felt almost… familiar? There was a strange and vague sense of déjà vu, almost as if she had met him before. The girl quickly shook it off, returning her focus to the monster who was hungrily eyeing the both of them.

"She's right," Tsuru joined. "You're powerlevel is a bit above average, I'll give you that, but it's not nearly high enough to beat even one of us. What makes you think you stand a chance?"

"You think what you can sense now is the full extend of my power?" he chuckled. "Don't flatter yourself…"

Without warning, the creature began to power up, almost blowing the two rivals off their feet. They watched on in horror as a yellow aura surrounded the monster. They could see hundreds, no thousands of howling faces swirling around him, their features contorted in utter terror and fear. Ghostly images of innocent people who had already died at the monster's hands.

"You bastard…" Bunny growled. "Now I get it. You're not just killing these people, your feeding on them!"

"Yeeeesss," the creature rasped. "It is their life energy that gives me my power."

"Well, we ain't on the menu, buddy," Tsuru said, though he looked significantly less sure of himself. Bunny knew why: the monster had been hiding a great deal of his ki, and was now almost twice as strong as the crane disciple. The boy was clever, but strategy alone would not cut it against a force like this, and he knew it.

"Hey, Tsuru," she whispered, never taking her eyes off the beast. "I don't like you and you don't like me, but I think we may need to work together on this one."

"Me? Team up with you?!" he scoffed coldly. "As if."

"This is no time for your stupid pride!" she hissed nervously. "Can't you sense his powerlevel just went through the roof?! If either of us fights that thing one-on-one, we're going to get clobbered, but if we join forces and combine our strength, we may just stand a chance!"

"Alright then… As much as I hate to admit it, I think you're right," he nodded grimly. "On my mark, we attack; one… two…"

Bunny waited for a 'three', but it never came. Without warning, the boy suddenly bolted, his laugh echoing through the empty streets.

"What the… HEY!!!"

"HAHAHA!!! You always were way too gullible, turtle girl! You two have fun killing each other off!"

"TSURU!!! GET BACK HERE YOU ASSHOLE!!!" Bunny shrieked, preparing to dart after her traitorous rival. However, the monster had already beat her to it. Faster than her eyes could track, he disappeared and reappeared right before the startled crane disciple. Before the boy could react, a green elbow slammed down on his back, sending him crashing into the pavement below.

"Serves you right," Bunny snapped as her rival slowly got back to his feet, his head still reeling. "See if I ever save your butt again."

"Come on, Ros… Bunny, don't tell me you weren't tempted to try the same."

"Well… maybe a little…"

The monster took a step towards them. The two teenagers quickly took a step back. He grinned, his tail swishing eagerly behind him. Suddenly, Tsuru lunged at the creature, landing a flying kick at his chest. The beast tried to recover, but the crane disciple was relentless, jack hammering the creature at near lightning speed. Bunny charged while the element of surprise was still on their side, joining the boy in a flurry of fists and punches. The monster seemed overwhelmed for a moment, but then suddenly formed an aura around himself, repelling the two rivals and sending them skidding across the street.

"Damn, that thing is tougher than it looks," Tsuru said. "We better get serious."

"You were holding back?"

"Weren't you?"

Bunny smirked, her rival smirking back.

"Let's freak him out," she grinned, balling her fists and moving her feet further apart.

"POWER UP!!!" Bunny yelled, a brightgreen aura exploding around her. Tsuru's ki flared blue around him, his energy soaring to almost inhuman heights. The two continued to yell as they powered up to their max, energy crackling around them like lightning. The ground beneath their feet trembled, cracks forming in the pavement.

"HAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!" Tsuru roared, his raven hair standing on end as his power reached its peak. Next to him, Bunny's entire body was engulfed in a green colored tempest, an almost devilish grin on her face.

"Hehehe… not so cocky now, are you, ugly?"

"That's it?"

Bunny blinked, then furrowed her brow.

"What do you mean 'that's it'?" she protested. "We're way stronger now that we powered up! Maybe it would be a bit difficult fighting you one-on-one, but there's no way you can handle both of us!"

"Hehe… he's bluffing," Tsuru grinned. "That thing is about to eat the pavement and he knows it!"

Bunny tried to share his confidence, but part of her began to doubt. The creature's powerlevel was high, but not that high. Maybe slightly above their combined force, but that still left them with the advantage of power in numbers. So why was he so calm? Was the monster really bluffing? Or was he hiding something from them?

"Before we kick your ass, tell us one thing," Bunny demanded. "Who are you? You learned our names, so do you care to return the courtesy or should we just call you 'hey, ugly'?"

"Well, since you're dying to know… My name is Cell."

The girl was about to make a remark on the terrible pun, but suddenly found herself being flung away like a ragdoll. She crashed into the streets, the monster moving in for the kill. But as his tail was about to strike, Tsuru delivered a swift kick to Cell's head, knocking him off course.

"That was for warning me back in the diner. Consider us even now," he said.

"Gotcha," she nodded grimly, jumping back to her feet. The two rivals braced for another assault, but the monster stayed in place, slowly raising a greenskinned hand.

"But… that stance…" Tsuru stuttered, his eyes growing wide. "Don't tell me that thing's going to…"

"DODONPA!!!" Cell yelled, firing a ray of concentrated energy from the tip of his finger. Tsuru stood nailed to the ground, staring at the incoming beam like a deer caught in the headlights. Bunny lunged at the boy, pushing him out of the way and behind a building.

"I guess that's 2-1 for me, huh?" she grinned, but her archenemy didn't seem to listen.

"How the hell does that monster know the Dodonpa?!" he breathed, still in shock. "That's a Crane School technique! The only way he could have learned that is if he studied under my father or uncle Tsuru!"

"Figures your old man has something to do with this," Bunny glared.

"He does not!" Tsuru hissed. "There is no way he would accept that disgusting…"

A blue blast came flying at them from behind, and the two teenagers could barely dodge in time. Now it was Bunny's turn to be shocked, as she could have recognized that attack from a mile away.

"That was a Kamehameha!" she panicked. "This thing knows Turtle School techniques too!"

"This is getting ridiculous," Tsuru growled, getting back to his feet and facing the monster. "Alright, Cell… talk! Who are you? What are you!? How the hell have you mastered both the turtle and the crane arts, even though you probably should just have focused on the latter?"

"Hey!!!"

Cell chuckled, eyeing the two nervous teenagers. They warily looked back, trying to get ready for anything he could throw at them.

"That is for me to know… and for you to never find out."

"Then we'll just have to beat it out of you," Bunny barked, lunging at the monster. She fired a ki-blast at his face, but Cell swatted it away without effort. However, it distracted him long enough for her to land a spinning kick on his neck. She grinned when her foot hit its mark, but her expression quickly fell when she saw the creature had not budged an inch. Tsuru rushed to her aid, but Cell quickly grabbed Bunny's leg and flung the girl at her rival, sending both at them crashing through the window of an abandoned drugstore. Outside, they could already hear the monster's metallic footsteps coming closer.

"Turtle girl," Tsuru started, slowly getting back to his feet. "Any chance you have a secret killer attack up your sleeve?"

"Sorry, fresh out."

"Slacker. Good thing I've been working on a new finishing move. I was saving it for you, but I guess I'll have to bring out the big guns ahead of schedule."

"Only there's a reason you haven't used it yet, am I right?"

He nodded grimly.

"This move is strong enough to blast that creep to pieces, but I'll need a full minute to charge it and I'll be wide open doing so. Think you can keep Captain Cockroach off my back for 60 seconds?"

A bright light flooded the store, and suddenly the entire outside wall was blasted away. Cell slowly emerged from the shroud of dust, his silhouette like a ghostly angel of death. His beak twisted into a cruel grin, the monster's tail arched above his head and poised to strike.

"Start charging," Bunny ordered, crouching into a fighting stance. This was going to be the longest and most painful minute of her life…